Beneath the Hallowed Hill (10 page)

A small group of workers stood to the side of the enormous crystal that was still sending out echoes of energy. They began a slow crooning chant that lulled the eddies in the huge stone to sleep, like a boat rocking on small waves in the hot afternoon sun. Megan slipped out before they finished, overwhelmed with sensation. Outside, the angle of the sun told her it was still mid-morning, but she headed for the bathhouse, intending to soak until the aching swirls in her own body subsided. Afterwards, she would go back to the villa and meet her housemates over lunch, hopefully grounded and more herself.

Chapter Six

Govannan escorted the Sirian ambassador and his party down the path Megan took the day before, enjoying the silent touching of minds. The group walked in a golden harmony, still resonating with the energies of the transport. They shared his joy that Megan at last arrived after all these years of waiting, that she found the right tone at once, swimming in the currents of sound and light. He looked forward to teaching her to work with the giant crystal, to the years of slow and patient instruction that would slowly build in complexity and subtlety until its culmination, a journey such as the one this group just completed. He and Megan would stream through the universe together, bursting in showers of light.

The silver tinkle of laughter brought him back from his imaginings, and he looked up to see one of the women glancing at him, her long head cocked to the side and her emerald eyes amused. Govannan blushed, but she sent him a reassuring mental nudge, saying without words that she too discovered a lover and waited long for that moment of union, and the wait was almost as enjoyable as the first act of love. He nodded to her, and she turned away just as he brushed up against a wall in her mind. She closed a part of herself to him. He shook like a horse, throwing his hair back, the shells clicking musically. He took no offense that she kept parts of herself private; the Sirians were an ancient and wise people, one of the elder star civilizations who guided the growth of life on Earth.

They arrived at the vehicle pad and he gestured toward the group’s new escort, forcing himself to speak aloud. Crisp, discreet words did not carry the nuance of telepathy, the bursts of imagery, the swirls of emotion. “May your visit be fruitful, your honor.”

The senior ambassador inclined his head in a slight bow. “We thank you for your service, Master Govannan.” His voice held the tones of a reed flute. “I would speak more with you on another visit.”

“I am ever at your service.” Govannan returned the bow.

The group flowed into the glass-domed vehicle, and Govannan strode off toward his office. Halfway there, he turned into a favorite alcove garden and sat by the fountain, watching sparrows peck between the flagstones. One hopped into the stone basin and, spreading her wings, lowered her small brown body into the water where she shook vigorously, sprinkling him with tiny drops. The bird hopped out and sat in a beam of sunlight to dry. The wind chimes spoke in the breeze. Govannan stood and stepped around the bird, which sat unperturbed in her sunbeam, eyes closed, completely at peace. He, however, was late for a meeting.

Govannan reached his office and snatched up the relevant message crystal from his desk, then hurried to the main headquarters of the Crystal Guild. He snuck through a side door of the large meeting room and was engulfed in the general din of conversation. Representatives were still settling in, so he took his seat in the circle, nodding to Evenor, the representative from the Guild of Governors. Opaque blue selenite panels divided the chamber from the circular vestibule that connected to the outer hallways. Inside, three tiers of seats circled around a large round scrying crystal that sat in the middle, its surface frosty at present.

Evenor stood and the guilds sorted themselves out, finding their seats. Quiet replaced the cacophony of voices as the central crystal began to clear. Evenor looked around the table, meeting the eye of each delegate before he spoke. “Today we meet at the request of the New Knowledge Guild,” he looked toward their senior representative, “the newest member of this body.”

Govannan wondered if he imagined the emphasis on “newest,” but doubted his musical ears would miss a tone of voice. He allowed his eyes to slide over the group from the New Knowledge Guild and noted they did not miss the implication either; several shifted in their chairs, and one woman turned to a colleague to comment under her breath. Govannan was fresh from a transport, his senses were stretched to their finest attunement, and he noticed a certain…what was it exactly…flatness. He stretched his senses even further. Each guild carried a certain frequency of energy. For example, people who were talented in the arts vibrated in a different way than members of Gaia’s Guild. Perhaps the delegation from the New Knowledge Guild merely subdued their understandable excitement and anxiety over their proposal, but still, there was something. He turned his attention back to Evenor.

“…hear their ideas and deliberate on the best course of action.” The representative of the Guild of Governors sat down and folded his hands on the table in front of him.

Surid, the head of the New Knowledge Guild, stood and cleared his throat—a little ostentatiously in Govannan’s opinion. He gave himself a little shake. They deserved a fair hearing, and here he was passing judgment before they even began.

Surid smiled at the gathering. “Thank you, Guild Masters, for your attendance today. We at the freshly formed,” here he nodded toward Evenor, “New Knowledge Guild have made a momentous discovery. As you are well aware, new and mysterious illnesses are cropping up amongst us.” As he spoke, images of people suffering from these mysterious ailments appeared in the surface of the central crystal. “Aches and pains, general malaise, premature aging, physical symptoms of all kinds. This is particularly dismaying considering we have prided ourselves on the health, vigor and intelligence of Atlanteans.”

Is ”prided” the right word?
Govannan wondered.

“At first we imagined this a passing illness, or a series of viruses that were challenging our systems, but the Healers Guild,” he nodded toward the group of blue-robed representatives, “seemed unable to stop the spread and the indeed proliferation of the maladies. Now, Atlantis seems to be at a crisis point.”

Evenor straightened in his chair, and several members of the audience shifted uncomfortably. The crystal went blank.

Surid pushed on. “We have a theory.”

Theory?
Govannan pressed his fingers together. Guilds usually called a meeting such as this to announce information or prophecy, not guesses.

“We are all aware of the history of manifestation on this planet Earth. The creators perfected their plans in the etheric dimension before manifesting physical forms.” Exquisite pictures filled the sphere—seals dived into aquamarine water, deer ran across a green meadow, a flock of parakeets launched themselves into the sky. “The creators manifested those blueprints into the reality of physical being.”

Govannan nodded. The origin of life on Earth was a familiar story to all Atlanteans.

“We at the New Knowledge Guild believe that physicality is now taking its own course, developing in ways not anticipated.”

Nagaitco, a man from the Music Guild, leaned toward him. “What did he say?”

“Not anticipated,” Govannan answered in an undertone.

“But…” Nagaitco’s wrinkled brow mirrored Govannan’s own bewilderment.

“Yes, not anticipated.” Surid enunciated the words distinctly.

The room buzzed with voices. Evenor raised his hand and the voices subsided. “Let us hear the entire presentation,” he said in a tone so mild he might be commenting on the weather. The crystal in the middle showed images of tall light beings.

Surid nodded to the Master of the Guild of Governors and waited for absolute silence. Govannan felt another stab of annoyance.

“Of course, the first response people have when they are introduced to this idea is to say that the creators were incapable of making mistakes. Yet, do we not have evidence to the contrary? The illnesses exist and our talented healers still struggle.”

If such a thing were possible, Govannan would have thought the man was enjoying the Healing Guild’s failure.

Surid drew himself up to his full height. “We proposed to check actual developments against the original blueprints. Once we have determined if our physical development has gone off course, we can correct the problems on this dimension.”

A silence as chilly as the deepest waters of the Atlantic hung about the room, but the cacophony of emotion beneath that silence plucked at Govannan’s empathic senses like a lyre buffeted by gale winds. The Guild Masters sat in various attitudes of disbelief—some openly stunned, others hiding their feelings behind polite smiles. Govannan filtered out the emotions of the room for a moment to check his own response. The creators were beings of cosmic intelligence, and he doubted their designs needed improvement. Doubt was actually a polite mask for his certainty that anyone who thought the creators could have made a mistake was himself deluded.

“As a matter of fact, we’ve already begun to collect some samples,” Surid announced.

The words struck Govannan like a blow to the chest. The room erupted in a cacophony of voices. “Already begun?” “Without our permission?” “Mistakes of the creators?” Evenor stood, holding his hands out like he was giving the group a blessing. The crystal in the center frosted over completely.

Govannan shielded himself from the chaos and focused on the head of the New Knowledge Guild, who was trying to speak over the din. He closed his eyes and sent a deep probe into the man. The surface of his mind was filled with facts, anxiety about how his presentation would be received, and catalogs of species to be checked. Beneath all this were images of a little girl playing in a garden and a woman sitting in the shade of a mango tree, laughing. Govannan sank deeper still, searching for the natural link all life shared, that basic connection to the One Source. It ran beneath Surid’s conscious awareness, like a secret underground stream, but the man’s mind seemed unaware of it. Instinctively, Govannan reached for the key crystal he carried with him at all times, his link to the Mother Stone, and directed a stream of energy to Surid to restore his connection. The energy fell flat. Surid continued to talk, his mind separated from this deep inner stream of knowing. Govannan sat back heavily in his chair. How could this be? He never encountered such a case in an adult. Certainly young children needed nurturing to establish a firm connection with the One, but an adult? The head of a guild?

Evenor finally managed to restore order with the assistance of the Healers Guild, who chanted a quiet undertone that calmed and reassured. Evenor straightened his robes, nodding at a comment whispered in his ear. He looked around the room, again gathering the attention of each of the assembled much as a shepherd gathers his flock. “The Elders will meet to seek balance in this matter.”

Murmurs of agreement began to rise, but Evenor held up his hand. He turned to Surid. “We will call for you to hear more testimony when we are ready.”

Surid opened his mouth as if to protest, but must have thought better of it.

Evenor looked around again. “Let us be wise in what we say to others. There is some unrest in the city due to these illnesses. We do not wish to increase our fellow citizens’ alarm, but to soothe it. Healing comes with calm.”

Govannan hurried through the crowd without stopping to speak with anyone. He needed to find Rhea, the head of the Crystal Guild. She could help him understand what he felt from Surid.

* * * *

Megan floated like a piece of kelp in the middle of the hottest tub in the bathhouse. The waters worked their magic. She took a deep breath and submerged, then tilted her face up and resurfaced, allowing the water to sluice off her body. Hurried footsteps approached and she reached for a wrap, still shy in her new surroundings. Thuya stopped at the edge of the pool, her face flushed, panting from her rush. “The Head Mistress has sent for you, child. You must come at once,” she blurted out.

Megan clambered out of the pool. She toweled her hair while Thuya dried off her back. Megan grabbed her clothes and dressed quickly. Thuya held her at arm’s length, as her mother did just yesterday, and straightened her hair and robe until Megan met her approval. “Now, come with me. I’ll show you the way.”

Megan followed, although secretly she thought she could get there faster on her own.

“Of course you could, dear, but I want to tell you who you’re going to meet.”

“Sorry,” Megan said in an undertone, realizing Thuya picked up her thought psychically.

Thuya chuckled. “No need to apologize, I know I’m an old woman. Now, pay attention. Rhea is the head of the Crystal Guild, Govannan leads the Crystal Matrix Chamber.” She looked back at Megan, who nodded. “Rhea heard we have a new apprentice and wants to meet you.”

Thuya led her to the Grand Hall, across from the building she met Govannan in that morning. “Let the Guild Mistress speak first, and only answer her questions. Don’t introduce your own topic.”

“I understand,” Megan said.

“It is customary to bow in honor of the wisdom of the guild, then stand and wait for her to invite you to sit.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

They made their way down a long hallway, Megan trying to silence the slap of her slippers on the wood floor. Thuya, for all her girth, made no noise at all. At the end of the hall, Thuya stopped, catching her breath again. She gave Megan a once over and straightened her hair again. “Such thick curls,” she murmured. She gave Megan’s robe one last tug, then nodded.